The Fallen Hero
by Anotherhopelessromantic23
Summary: After Annabeth leaves him and Percy is banished from a totalitarian Octavian ruled Camp Jupiter, he must find his will to fight again, not only to free the camp-but to save his friends. Along the way, Percy will question everything he believes in-and he will become something more than just a hero. Full summary inside!
1. What do you fight for?

The Rise of the Fallen Hero

**A/N: I'm writing this story because I watched the preview for the Dark Knight Rises (which looks awesome by the way), and I got this weird idea of how Percy would be banned from an increasingly totalitarian Camp Jupiter. Here's the full summary:**

**After being mortally injured in the second Giant War, Percy and Reyna aren't able to serve as praetors. The campers elect Jason and Annabeth (who have fallen in love), now war heroes for their exploits during the war, as their replacements. Octavian is also now favored among both the Greeks and the Romans for saving Camp Jupiter when it was nearly overrun by monsters. He begins to build his political power while Percy and Reyna are out of commission. Since he saved both of their lives, Jason and Annabeth rely on Octavian's counsel, and as a result becomes the leader of the Senate and the general of New Rome's army.**

**In the meanwhile, Percy recovers and finds out what's happened. he also finds out that Octavian plans to persecute 'suspected' spies from the last war. Although Percy tries his best to stop Octavian from doing so, he ultimately fails, and after he tries to stop the blatant abuse of a few demigods, is banished from camp. He will be exectuted if he ever returns. Luckily, a few good friends decided to stick with Percy, and together, they must a find a way to create a rebllion that would dethrone Jason, Annabeth, and Octavian.**

**Ok this summary still sucks, but trust me, this is a lot deeper than it seems. Percy will be broken this time around, and he'll nothing to lose but everything to fight for. Another warning: percy will become even more powerful, and this story will be somewhat violent. And _italics_ mean flash back in this chapter, just in case you guys get confused.**

**As always, Read&Review please!**

In a warehouse near the bay of San Francisco, a sixteen year old, green eyed and raven haired boy sat quietly, waiting. He was sitting on a very uncomfortable chair, with his hands on an old black dilapidated fold-up poker table. Across from him, another equally uncomfortable but frustratingly empty chair stared back at him. He could hear the voices of what was left of his friends just outside the door, and their frantic hushed whispers did little to calm his already rattled nerves. His usually handsome face was bruised and beaten, and he looked as if he'd just been blown off a cliff. His face was stained with tears, which were still slowly flowing from his eyes.

The boy's name was Percy Jackson.

He was waiting for his father, Poseidon, the god of the sea.

Percy tapped his fingers on the table again.

Then in a flash of light his father appeared in his usual fisherman's getup; khaki shorts, a t-shirt, and a tan fishing vest filled with all sorts of fishing gear. He held a long fishing rod, which while it looked innocent, was actually his incredibly destructive and incredibly powerful trident.

Poseidon said nothing as he walked over to Percy. He stood there for a moment, and then Percy got up and hugged him, and Poseidon hugged his favorite demigod son back tightly, stroking his hair. Then Percy let him go and sat down.

"It's over. It's over dad, they banned me from Camp Jupiter," Percy said as he looked at the table. He sighed quietly, and continued, "They…They said I'm not…their hero anymore…Jason is…" as he spoke, Percy's green eyes drifted, and he heaved, not from sorrow but from pain.

"There, there son…calm down," Poseidon said quietly. Percy paused for a moment, and then wiped his tears. He looked up at his father as he recalled the day's events in his mind.

"What do you fight for…"

_A crowd of Romans and Greek demigods alike chanted Annabeth and Jason's names as they stepped out the injured Reyna's principia. They walked out beaming, hand-in-hand, and Jason raised his sword. The crowd roared in excitement._

"When the people you fought to protect so long and so hard…"

"_Reyna may be injured," Jason said. The crown instantly silenced for a minute, apparently giving the nearly paralyzed Reyna a moment of silence. "But I have decided to listen to you, the people-"The crowd roared again, cutting him off, it took Jason several moments to get them to be silent again. "And I have, with approval of the Senate, retaken my former post as your Praetor!" This time the crowd's praise and applause sounded like thunder. "As Percy is also dealing with some…physical and emotional issues…the Senate and I have decided to choose Annabeth Chase-" the crowd thundered._

"_Beloved daughter of Athena and slayer of Giants-"More praise. "As your new second praetor!" Jason bellowed and kissed Annabeth fiercely on the lips. There was a far amount of ooing and awing from the crowd. After they finished kissing, Annabeth smiled and addressed the crowd, "And who can forget Octavian, our new hero and champion who, when all hope was lost, not only saved the camp, but some of our Chosen Seven as well-" the crowd boomed and several girls screamed Octavian's name. He stepped out from the crowd with a smug look on his face. Jason continued for Annabeth, "He will be my right hand man and counselor because he has politely declined the position of praetor-" the crowd awwwed for a moment. "And will instead serve as the head of the Senate and our first acting general!" The crowd roared again, and Octavian smiled._

"…With everything you have…."

_Percy and Reyna fought back to back in an old Roman temple over a cliff. Percy had no idea where the rest of his friends were, but he knew he had to find protect Reyna for as long as he could against the giant that was meant to be Ares's opposite. Percy dodged and parried the giant's huge sword, and tried his damnedest not be hit by the arrows that some Laistrygonian giants were raining down upon him. Reyna was at his back with a hand and half foot sword imperial gold sword in each hand, slashing and hacking madly, killing any hellhound or Cyclops or snake lady that got too close._

_They were in Greece._

_And this was the final battle._

_Suddenly, the giant opened his palm, and huge fireball exploded from it, directly at Percy. Percy tried to push Reyna out of the way, but he was too slow: he and Reyna were blow a hundred meters, and they crashed painfully down onto the hard stone. Percy was dazed and barely alive. All he could hear was ringing in his ears, and everything was blurry. He had lost Riptide, but something told him it would appear in his pocket later. He looked around and saw that the blast had taken out most of the monsters as well, save for a few dazed hellhounds. Percy got up, first on all fours, then on his knees. He managed to stand by using a column for support._

_He looked across the stone temple and saw that Reyna was still alive._

_And still fighting. _

_One of her swords had been blown away, and there was blood dripping from her mouth, but she was still slashing at the giant. Percy watched as she rolled to avoid another swing from the giant's humongous sword, and, coming up from behind him, stabbing in the ankle, drawing blood. The giant roared and said, "DIE!" he swatted at her again._

_She dodged it._

_Percy started to run to help her, but a hellhound tackled him from behind, slamming him to the ground and biting his back. Percy dug in his pocket and pulled out Riptide, uncapping it and stabbing the hellhound in the jaw, turning him to dust. He got up, holding his back and started toward Reyna and the giant again. They were still fighting fiercely, and Percy was only ten feet away.  
Then it happened._

_The bane of Mars swept his sword low and Reyna swiftly jumped over it. Then he faked right and Reyna moved left. As she moved left, he slapped her violently with one of his enormous hands. Reyna flew clean across the temple, and almost over the cliff._

"_NOOOOOO!" Percy screamed as he watched Reyna start to slip off the cliff. He ran toward her with all of his might, dodging more arrows._

_Then an arrow pierced his thigh._

_Percy stumbled, but didn't stop. He limped faster, pulling out the arrow. The giant rounded on Percy, smiling._

"_Are you ready to die now, Son of Neptune?"_

_Percy didn't even reply. He simply threw the arrow right at the giant's eyeball. The giant wailed in pain and stomped around, clutching his eyeball and cursing at Percy in Greek._

_But Percy kept going._

_Another arrow hit him in the side. Percy stumbled again, but didn't stop._

_Then Reyna's almost lifeless body started to slip off the cliff. _

_Percy dropped into a slide, taking more arrows to the body. He managed to grab her hand. Much to his relief, she grabbed it back. She was nearly off the cliff now._

"_Percy you have to let me go," she said as her deep brown eyes met his sea green ones._

"_Kill the giant. End this. I'm already dead."_

"_Not yet Reyna, not yet! Stay with me," Percy said as he started to pull her up from the cliff. Reyna nodded, knowing that she wouldn't be able to talk Percy into leaving her. Percy pulled her halfway up and then-_

_The giant stomped on the temple floor, creating a small earthquake. Reyna slid lower in Percy's grip. She hit her head against the cliff face, and started to black out._

"_DON'T YOU DIE ON ME REYNA! DON'T YOU DO IT! COME ON WE STILL GOT A MONSTER TO FIGHT! COME O-" A hellhound suddenly came up from behind and knocked Percy to the ground. Percy kicked him and lashed out with Riptide with his other free hand. He was now lying on the temple's cold stone floor, with one arm extended off the cliff, holding onto Reyna with all of his might. The other arm was madly swinging at the hellhound. The hellhound backed away, and Percy started to pull Reyna up again._

_Then the hellhound grabbed Percy's leg._

_Its jaws chomped down on his lower leg, and Percy screamed in pain. Then he kicked it in its mouth, and with a slash of Riptide, it turned to dust. Percy watched the blood from the seven arrows embedded in his chest and the bite on his leg spread out around him. The Son of Neptune was going to die, and he knew it. He looked up at the stormy gray sky through the temple's open ceiling. It reminded him of Annabeth's beautiful eyes. He was ready to die right there, with Annabeth's image floating in his mind._

_But he had to save Reyna._

_He pulled her up, fished out some nectar and ambrosia from his pocket, and shoved a good portion in her mouth, and a little into his. Reyna coughed, and Percy let out a sigh of relief. She would live then, after all._

_Then the giant stomped hard on the temple ground. The temple collapsed, and chunks of it started to fall of the cliff._

"_I WILL KILL YOU PERCY JACKSON!" The giant screamed as he reached for Percy. Percy let Reyna go._

_She slid over the cliff, and he jumped after her, grabbing her in midair._

_Then he closed his eyes and fell into the ocean._

When he awoke, it was already over. Apparently, Leo had swooped in with the Argo, and Annabeth and Jason had finished off the giant. Percy and Reyna had been fished from the sea and placed in the med bay of the ship. They said it was miracle that either of them was alive, considering the circumstances. Reyna would need surgery and would be out of commission, and apparently, he would have to rest for a few weeks too.

He had no idea how fast everything would change while he slept.

He remembered waking up and finding Annabeth at his bedside.

"….and the people you loved leave you…"

_Annabeth smiled at Percy as he opened his eyes. Percy smiled back, and instantly reached up and kissed her. "You're one of the only reasons I'm still alive Wisegirl," he said as he stroked her cheek. She gave him a small smile, and then hurriedly turned away. Percy didn't interpret this as anything different, however, and continued, "I remembered your crazy gray eyes, and I knew I had to see you again-and get on your nerves one more time." Percy laughed, but Annabeth remained silent._

"_Oh come on Annabeth, I'll be fine. Is Reyna okay? Why are you so quiet anyway?"_

"_Percy," she said as she turned to him. Her eyes were brimming with tears._

"_What's the matter Wise-" She interrupted him in a choked voice._

"_We can't do this anymore Percy…I'm in love with someone else now," she said finally. Then she broke out crying._

"_Ha! Yeah right Wisegirl. Nice joke though, but um, can't fool me. I may have kelp for brains, but I'm not stupid. I know you love me," Percy said, giving her a crooked half smile. But Annabeth continued to cry._

"_N-n-no Percy," She said between sobs, "I'm not joking. I fell for someone else while we were in Rome. I'm sorry Percy…I'm so sorry…"_

"_Wait, wait, wait what? Okay so, since I was gone for awhile you just-just moved on? Why would you- Who did you-" Percy stuttered as he tried to find the words. Annabeth simply touched his face, giving him a small kiss on the lips._

_Then she left._

"…When they toss you aside…"

_A few weeks later and Percy was all bandaged up and, much to his doctor's displeasure, out of the hospital. The only people who were there to see him out were Leo, Piper, Tyson, Frank, Hazel, and Nico. Percy hadn't wanted a huge crowd anyway, but he was shocked to see the camp so desolate-and to see that Annabeth hadn't even bothered to see him out. After Tyson and his friends gave him a few bear hugs, he asked the question._

"_Where is everybody?"_

_Piper started crying, and Leo shook his head. Frank started to say something, but then he stopped, apparently not able to find the words. It was Nico who told him._

"_They're all in a rally on the Via Principaelis…by the principia."_

_Piper started crying again._

"_What's the rally abou-" Then Percy heard the chanting. He slowly walked over to large crowd that had amassed by the principia. He watched as Annabeth and Jason kissed, and then he heard of Octavian's new role in the Senate. His hand slowly balled up into a fist._

"…And you lose their respect…"

"_Jason, what are you doing? Why are giving Octavian so much power?" Percy said as he paced around the principia. A good deal of his bandages had been taken off by now, but his doctors still recommended rest. _

_And Percy still ignored them._

"_Look Percy, Octavian saved the camp, and let's face it he's pretty damn good leader and speaker. Besides Owly and I are the praetors, which means we will always have the highest authority over the camp," Jason said calmly. Annabeth sat in a corner, playing with a Ipad, purposefully avoiding Percy's eyes._

"_Owly? Ahaha, wow what a great pet name for my ex-girlfriend. But whatever. I'm here for the camp, not to duke it out with you about some girl. I know it may seem as if Octavian is a nice guy now, but trust me Jason, he's playing you. He purposefully rejected the-my-praetor seat because he knew that if he started changing everything, people would call him a tyrant…and they'd be right!"_

"_Percy, you're not thinking rationally," Annabeth said from the corner, "You're still wounded, and I heard you suffered some minor brain damage when you fought that giant."_

_Percy laughed a little maniacally._

"_Are you calling me crazy? And since when can someone take the seat of a praetor who's still able to serve his post?"_

"_Percy," Annabeth started, but Jason held up his hand to tell her to stop. Then he continued, "The senate, and a good majority of the camp thought it would be better if you recovered peacefully, so we decided to bump you down to officer."_

"_And nobody told me?"_

_They both simply stared at him._

"_Look I'm not Roman, so quite frankly I could give a damn whether I have power or not. I actually didn't want to be praetor anyway. But I do give a damn when you guys let a sleezeball like Octavian into a position of power. Do you have any idea what he will do to this camp? To the people of New Rome? He's playing both of you, and I'm shocked you can't see it! I'm especially disappointed in you Annabeth," Percy said as he started to walk out._

"_Oh and you will have to give up that Praetor seat…because Reyna will get better…trust that." And Percy left, slamming the door behind him and running straight for the hospital._

_Reyna greeted him with a smile when he entered. "So are they going to knock out Octavian or what?"_

_Percy frowned, and said, "No."_

_Reyna suddenly reached up and grabbed him, pulling him close to her. He was only inches away from her face._

"_Listen to me Percy. You have to make sure Octavian doesn't do anything crazy. Fight for me in the Senate. And you have to get better, you hear me? I know you nearly died trying to save me…and I am still in your debt Percy Jackson. But it will take me at least a month to recover, so you have to be the one to fight for the people of New Rome. And…you have to because…you're a hero Percy, and a warrior. And you're a fair and rational person. You don't just pretend to be one, like Octavian. You can't be smooth talked into anything. So please Percy…fight for my camp's freedom, ok?"_

"_Freedom? Reyna I don't Octavian will do anything that-"_

"_Percy in the next Senate meeting, he's going to persecute all of the Romans 'suspected' in helping Gaea attack the camp while we were in Greece. And by suspected, I mean his enemies and opposition in the Senate. And now I know Jason and Annabeth will back him."_

"_Wait so he's going to-"_

"_Yes…he will fight to banish or…execute any suspected spies. He will convince the people that if he doesn't take control, those who still believe in Gaea's cause can allow monsters into the camp. And then he'll slowly help his allies gain more power-"_

"_And become even more of a hero for doing so. He'll be even more popular than Annabeth or Jason, just because it'll look like he's ridding the camp of spies."_

"_Yes. Yes he will," she grabbed Percy's cheeks and bore into his green eyes. Then she kissed him passionately, and Percy couldn't help but kiss back with as much enthusiasm. Then she let him go and said, "I'm still in your debt Percy Jackson…and you'll always be in my heart." Percy smiled and hugged her, and as she hugged him back he said, "I'll fight for you."_

"…And you lose their faith…"

"_YOU CAN NOT PERSECUTE ROMANS AND GREEKS BECAUSE THEY ARE SUSPECTED OF BEING SPIES! AND IF THEY WERE EVEN SPIES, WE ALL KNOW OF GAEA'S POWERS-THEY COULD'VE EASILY BEEN TRICKED INTO BEING ONE!" Percy roared to the Senate, his words echoing off of the walls of the hall like Senate building. A few senators nodded, and Senator Larry interjected, "I agree with the Son of Neptune! This is madness! If we throw these demigods out on mere suspicions, they will be killed or eaten by monsters out there!"_

_Then Octavian stood up, and addressing the Senate in his usual rational, smooth voice, "Now that is agreeable, Percy, Larry. But should we really risk the safety of the hundreds of citizens and campers of New Rome for a few that were, in fact, the reason the Giant's were able to breach our camp's defenses?"_

_The Senators, Jason and Annabeth included murmured their agreement._

"_We're not executioners, and we don't damn our brothers and sisters on sheer suspicion," Percy said as he glared at Octavian. Octavian halted for a minute, and then began, "We all know you Greeks place blind faith in your campers-I remember you had a few spies for Kronos in your camp during the second Titan war-and didn't they end up costing several campers their lives? I think one was a girl from the Aphrodite cabin," he said he looked coldly at Piper who glared daggers back at him._

"_We are not Greeks, Percy Jackson. We are Roman, and we eliminate all threats and weaknesses from our state," he concluded, and most of the Senate applauded._

"_This is just another power trip for him!" Percy yelled over the applause, "He's just using you!" The applause died instantly, but the every manipulative Octavian still managed to twist it his way._

"_Percy please. Don't go into your delusional claims again. We all appreciate what you did in Greece, but that head injury has…well…" he turned to the crowd, "Rattled your mind a little."_

"_I. Did. Not. Suffer. From. Brain. Damage. I didn't even hit my head Octavian! Stop trying to fool everyone into thinking what you're doing is best for the Camp!" Leo, Piper, Frank, Nico, and Hazel all started to support Percy, but Frank held up his hand again._

"_There are several eye-witnesses-"_

"_Bullsh*t!" Leo yelled, standing up from his seat. Several senators looked at him. He quickly sat down._

"_As I was saying, there are several eye-witnesses who said you hit your head Percy. I know you don't remember, but that's fine, it happens sometimes. Now all of those who agree with the decision to persecute spies and traitors of this camp and establish a task force to root them out, say Aye!"_

_Most of the Senate said Aye._

"_Those who don't, say Neigh!"_

_Only five senators said neigh, Percy and Nico included._

_Percy sank into his chair dejectedly._

"…And they curse you…"

_Percy drank one full cup of ambrosia. It burned up his insides, but he was instantly healed again. He flexed his leg and started to leave the barracks when Piper ran in. She looked frantic and still beautiful even if she was slightly disheveled, especially since she started to let her hair grow out._

"_Percy! Percy! They're trying to banish these-these-kids and Leo and Frank can't do anything, it's like-and Jason and Annabeth are just watching-why-it's-"Piper was so angry she was starting to run out of words._

"_Calm down Piper, tell me where they're at, I'll stop this," Percy said as he grabbed Riptide. _

"_They're at Via Praetoria in front of that chariot shop," she said as she started running. Percy hurried after her._

_When he arrived, he was horrified at what he saw. Four roman demigods clad in the Octavian's ridiculous guard uniforms were stand over three bound, teen demigods. "The People's Watch" as Octavian liked to call it, sneered and shouted at the demigods from under their purple armor, which had long golden strips running down its arms and legs and shoulders. A small crowd had gathered to watch PW make their first arrest, and Annabeth and Jason were there as well. The suspected demigods in question couldn't have been any less threatening; two were thirteen year old boys, and one looked as if he could be no older than fifteen._

_And they all looked scared out of their minds._

_Leo and Frank were already arguing with the guards and Frank kept trying to pull his officer's rank on them to let the demigods go. Percy walked up to the guards and asked, "What is going on here?"_

_The PW shaped up immediately. The leader, and tall brown haired seventeen-year-old, responded in an overly formal voice:_

"_Officer Jackson, these three have been suspected of treason, and under Octavian's law, are subject to due punishment before they are considered for trial…or banishment."_

"_And what evidence of treason do you have, exactly?"_

"_We received a good tip from an anonymous source that these three were illegally sending messages to the last of Mother Earth's army."_

"_So now what will you do with them?" Percy asked, praying that it wouldn't be too harsh a punishment._

"_Ahem," the leader coughed, "Under Octavian's law, the offenders will be given ten lashes each and taken to the new Reform and Retribution center, in which they will be interrogated vigorously. If they are found to be innocent, they will be placed on probation and supervision with minimal activity for a month, and if they are found guilty, they will receive lifetime bans from this camp."_

_Percy frowned and said, "Let me get this straight. You're going to whip a bunch of kids that are 'suspected' of being spies, put them on probation if they aren't and banish them if you can 'find' any type of evidence that are?"_

"_Yes sir."_

"_Well then," Percy uncapped Riptide, "I'm afraid I can't let you do that." He stepped in front of the prisoners and held his sword by his side. Jason and Annabeth quickly pushed the shocked PW guards out of the way. Annabeth spoke first._

"_Percy, they may be spies! Move out of the way!"_

"_So they deserved to be punished based on suspicion?"_

"_Percy its just protocol-they're just following rules. Move. Now," Annabeth said as she got in Percy's face. Percy looked past Annabeth and saw Jason's hand ready to flip his coin-transforming-sword open. But Percy wouldn't back down._

"_No."_

"_Fine then Perseus Jackson," an all too familiar voice boomed from a few meters away. It was Octavian, clad in his absurd uniform-and to make matters worse, he had half of the camp with him._

"_Let him let the spies go. Let him let our enemies go, and let them lead more monsters into our sanctum!" The crowd roared in protest._

"_Let more Roman and Greek blood be spilled because of Percy Jackson's 'morals' and 'feelings'. Who knows, maybe Percy is a spy."_

_Then the crowd chimed in._

"_Percy! They killed my brother Percy! They deserve to be punished!"_

"_My boyfriend's throat was slit in his sleep by a monster because of those TRAITORS!"_

"_Why are you defending them? You're not even praetor anymore."_

"_Go back to the sea you washed up clown!"_

"_He just wants to steal the spotlight again…"_

_And so on._

_Percy rolled his neck slowly. He could hear Piper trying to calm everyone down, but Octavian just kept pumping them up._

"_These kids-YOUR brothers-"he said as he pointed into the crowd, "And YOUR sisters, deserve a fair trial. Octavian is just going to punish them without any type of conclusive evidence!"_

_But the crowd ignored Percy. They adored Octavian and Jason and Annabeth, who were supporting him. They soon started chanting, "MOVE PERCY MOVE! MOVE PERCY MOVE!" Percy looked back at the kids, whose heads had fallen. One looked up at him with such innocent eyes; Percy knew he was no spy._

"_No. I won't move," Percy said as he stood his ground. Almost instantaneously, Frank and Leo stepped at his sides._

"_I stand with Percy," Leo said quietly._

"_I will stand with Percy," Frank said._

_Then Piper moved to step in with Frank and Leo._

"_I stand with Percy Jackson."_

_Then little Hazel stood next to Frank._

"_I will stand with Percy Jackson."_

_Percy looked at his friends in amazement._

"_You guys don't have to do this for-" Frank interrupted Percy._

"_Save it buddy, we'd do this even if you weren't here."_

_Leo winked at Percy, "Yeah Seaweed brain, you know I've always been a little crazy."_

_Percy turned back to the crowd and saw some doubt on their faces. If so many heroes were standing up for these three, was it really right for them to be punished?_

_Then Octavian opened his mouth again._

"_Percy Jackson is a traitor!"_

_Percy stepped toward Octavian and raised his sword._

"_Call me anything-coward, stupid, whatever, but don't you EVER call me a traitor," Percy said with a cold lethal anger. Octavian smiled._

"_Percy Jackson, you've just drawn your weapon at a People's Guard. The punishment for that is detainment and in your case-demotion." Then Octavian drew his sword._

"_And you WILL move out of the way," he sneered._

_Percy didn't move an inch._

"_Fine then," Octavian said as he stepped away, "Detain all of them!"_

_The PW reluctantly moved forward, drawing their swords. The leader moved toward Percy. Percy looked at him and said, "Please don't make me hurt you." The guard flinched and backed away._

_Suddenly Jason stepped forward. "Percy move. Now. We can settle this later, but for right now these people are suspects and they can at least be sent to R&R center."_

_Percy looked Jason in the eye._

"_You and I both know, Jason, that these three are innocent."_

"_Move Jackson! That's an order!"_

"_I guess I just disobeyed orders then," Percy said coolly. Jason's face became beet-red. "You what?"_

"_You heard me Grace."_

_They stared at each other fiercely, green eyes to blue. Percy could almost feel the tension between the two in the air and everyone in the crowd had silenced._

_Then Octavian stepped forward and pushed Leo out of the way. _

_Percy instinctively moved to help him._

_Then all hell broke loose._

_First the PW guards decided to grow a pair and charged Piper, Frank and Hazel, who were unarmed. Frank took one out with a one-two punch and Hazel tackled another. Piper drew her dagger and started to spar with the last one._

_Percy's sword intercepted the leader of the PW squad. The head guard slashed at Percy, and Percy easily dodge, smacking him with the flat edge of Riptide in the ribs. The guard groaned and fell back. Percy slashed at him again, purposefully missing his nose by inches. The guard yelped and back away. Then Percy somersaulted toward Octavian, who had grabbed one of the accused demigods. He raised his sword and sliced the ridiculous plume off of Octavian's helmet. Octavian spun around and jabbed at Percy in the ribs. Percy quickly sidestepped the weak attack, and with a flick of the wrist, he had used Riptide to disarm Octavian._

"_Enough is enough," Percy said as he pointed Riptide at Octavian's throat._

_Then Jason tapped him on the shoulder._

"…beat you…" Percy choked out as he remembered the fight between him and Jason. It had been long and brutal, and it had ended on Temple Hill.

_Percy stood on the roof of his father's temple, facing Jason. He was bleeding badly from a wound in his side. Jason looked no better, with several jagged sword marks across his body._

_But he still had his weapon._

_Riptide had just gone off the cliff, and Percy knew it would be at least a minute before it reappeared for him again._

_And by then it would be too late._

_Jason advanced toward Percy with his imperial sword drawn._

"_I'm sorry Percy. It didn't have to end like this," he said between coughs._

"_It still doesn't Jason. Please. Stop this madness," Percy asked one last time._

"_At least do it for your people!"_

"_I'm sorry Percy." _

_Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, slashed Percy Jackson across the body, cutting his SPQR tattoo in half and tearing open a huge strip of flesh on his chest. His Purple Roman shirt lay in tatters, and his Camp Half-Blood undershirt was nearly destroyed too._

_Percy fell to his knees._

_Then lightning struck the temple, blasting Percy off of the cliff and into the water below._

"When they damn you?"

"Well what do I fight for now? Why should I keep fighting?"

Posiedon looked into his sons eyes, and then he gazed around the empty warehouse room. He sighed, and then said, "You fight for what's right son."

_Percy fell headfirst into the water._

"And you know it'll hurt."

_Percy surfaced from the water holding his chest, which was starting to heal. He looked at his arm and saw his SPQR symbol had been magically altered; not only would the wound stop bleeding, but now his score mark had been slashed by a golden X that burned his skin. The letters SPQR were crossed out by a golden line. _

"It'll always hurt son."

_Percy climbed onto the shore and screamed in pain, clutching his arm. Rain started to fall heavily on his face. It hurt so much. _

"But you must endure son."

_Annabeth gone._

"As you always have."

_Banished from New Rome._

"Because now you and your friends out there are the only chance of freedom that camp will ever get," Poseidon said as he dug into his fishing vest pockets. He soon took a familiar ballpoint pen and some white adhesive wrap around bandages.

"Because now you have to transcend becoming just a hero Percy," he slid the pen across the table. "You have to become a beacon of hope, and you must become stronger."

"Now pick up your sword son."

Percy picked up Riptide and uncapped it. Poseidon tossed him the bandages. "And cover up that wound."

"No. I don't think I want too cover this up…I need to remember…to never forget," Percy said as he wrapped the bandage around the part of his arm that wasn't covered with SPQR tattoo. The stark white bandage was in direct contrast to Percy's tanned skin and blood-stained orange shirt.

Poseidon stood up to leave, "Now remember Percy. You may be down now-"

Percy Jackson stood up and grabbed his sword from the table. The Celestial bronze shined in the near darkness of the warehouse.

"But I'm not out yet."

**Alright, so there's the beginning for you. The story's set, but if you guys want more, please review! If not, well you can still review and tell what I did wrong! So anyway please review if you want me to carry on!**


	2. An enemy of Rome

**AN: Let me get my thankyous out of the way before I blab yer eyes out. first and foremost, I give a huge thanks to all of those who reveiwed the last chapter! Your reviews were great, and they inspired me to add another chapter. So thanks to all those who reviewed, added to favorites, subscribed, or even just decided to give it a quick read. I am, and I always will, be writing for the fans and the people who wish to be entertained, and I'm promising a good story this time: however, if you guys don't review, I won't know if the story is good enough for me to continue, so PLEASE REVIEW! The reviews inspire me to write more, and they assure me that I'm entertaining you guys.**

**K, now that my thanks are in order, here's the breakdown on this chapt: Octavian is raising the stakes.**

**Please enjoy and as always Read&Review!**

Octavian stood in Jupiter Optimus Maximus upon Temple hill. He was still wearing his People's Watch uniform, and his now ruined helmet was under one arm. It was night, and a cool breeze drifted though the open-aired temple.

He gazed at New Rome.

_Soon…mine._

Then he looked at Camp Jupiter.

_Mine…_ his inner conscious hissed, and Octavian smiled. Camp Jupiter was his, essentially. He had the support of the warriors and the people, and he had two very likable-but also very clueless-figureheads that were widely adored.

But he still had Percy Jackson and Reyna Miller to deal with.

He had been keeping tabs on Reyna for quite some time now. She was recovering, but thankfully, she was still too weak to stay out of bed long. He knew that when she was strong enough however, she'd try to return to her post-and probably oust him out of his new office.

_I can't stop her from recovering… it would be too suspicious,_ he thought as he gazed at the brightly lit New Rome against the night sky.

_I can detain her…but how? How do a silence such a strong and beloved warrior?_

"General Octavian, sir! Do you mind if I join you?"

Octavian pulled away from his diabolical musings, and turned to see Blake Anders, his second-in-command for the people's watch. Blake was only fifteen, but he was tall and thoroughly built, with huge muscular arms and a thick neck. He had the ruggedly handsome look of his father, Mars, the god of war, and a head full of scruffy spiked brown hair. Several of the girls around the camp found him to be incredibly attractive, and it was rumored he was quite the ladies man for someone so young.

_And he's loyal…don't forget that._

"Am I disturbing you…?" he asked again, taking of his PW helmet. Octavian shook his head vigorously and gestured him over to the edge of the temple, where he was standing. The young man reluctantly obliged and stepped next to Octavian. There were each silent for a brief moment, and then Octavian began to speak in his casually convincing tone.

"Do you love your Camp Blake?" Octavian asked softly, never turning away from his night view of New Rome.

"Of course Octavian. I'm proud to be Roman!" the boy said enthusiastically. Octavian rolled his eyes discreetly. The teen sounded like a damn ten year old. Some of his most loyal men are also the most stupid.

"Have you done what I asked?"

Blake was silent for a moment.

"Blake?"

"I've…contacted my brother…and he's contacted his friends…"

"And?" Octavian asked, this time turning to stare at his young supporter, his cold black eyes piercing Blake's innocent blue ones.

"They said that Percy Jackson was alive," he started, but Octavian simply waved his hands.

"I already knew that, tell me the other thing I asked of you," he said sharply.

"Well…they said they'd…kill him," Blake concluded with a gulp. Octavian nodded and stepped away from the dais, beginning his slow pace around the ocular temple. As he paced, he pondered the situation silently, contemplating the failure and success rates of such a task.

"And these are all your brethren?"

Blake who was gazing out across the Field of Mars, looked at him.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your brethren-sons of Mars and Ares, mercenaries, warriors and warmongers?" Octavian said in mid-step when he turned toward the boy.

"Yes…but…"

"But what? Spit it out Blake, you know I have no time for such nonsense," Octavian snapped, frustrated at the dim wittedness of his underling. Blake hesitated, gripping the rim of his helmet and staring at the temple floor.

"Well…this people my brother contacted…they're not exactly stable…"

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Ok fine. They're savages. Brutal killers. They've all been dishonorably discharged from several countries' militaries for some type of misconduct. And they all want to _disembowel_ Percy and his friends. And, on top of that, they're asking price is ten million dollars, with five million up front."

"Ah. I understand. So you feel sympathy for Percy Jackson? For the son of Vulcan who betrayed both of his camps,Leo Valdez? For the treacherous former spy Piper McLean, the oh-so-beautiful daughter of Venus? For that bumbling brother of yours, Frank Zhang?"

Blake simply dropped his head, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment.

"And let's not forget the damn Cyclops Ty-" Octavian started, but Blake interrupted him.

"I don't have any sympathy for them!" he shouted, rising himself to his full height and glaring at Octavian. One look from his superior however, caused for him to lower his voice.

"But I think a punishment of death would be too harsh. I think we can catch and reform those who were foolish enough to follow him…and maybe even Per-"

"PERCY JACKSON IS AN ENEMY OF ROME AND HER PEOPLE!" Octavian screamed in a maniac frenzy, his face contorting into a monstrous sneer. His words boomed throughout the empty temple as he rounded on Blake. Blake shrank away in fear. For someone so physically unimposing, Octavian could truly bring the essence of fear into the room.

Octavian saw the startled look on Blake's face and quickly switched back to his calming demeanor. He breathed a little harder, as if the outburst had tired him. Then he placed one hand on a column and leaned on it.

After a few dramatics breaths, he spoke again.

"Now Blake, you know I hate to lose my temper. But Percy Jackson will destroy New Rome, and he will try to take over Camp Jupiter. If he would blatantly disobey simple orders from his praetor, what's to stop him from doing so again?" Octavian asked, as he straightened himself up. Blake paused and then answered, "Nothing…right?"

"You're very right Blake. Percy wants to continue to hold power over all of us…even if that means killing Jason-or me for that matter," Octavian said gravelly. Blake's face instantly turned from doubt to anger. Octavian suppressed a smile when he saw his young protégé's hate burst forth.

"We must be willing to do what is necessary in order to ensure our way-the Roman way _-_ _survives._ And we must protect our brothers and sisters from those who seek to destroy our way of life."

"Will you Blake?" Octavian bored into Blake's eyes. Blake gulped.

"Will I what?"

"Do what is necessary to defend your home? Do what needs to be done?"

Blake paused for moment, and Octavian saw his apprehension. So he did pity the rebels. _But I know what will make you do what is necessary,_ Octavian thought.

"I know you are young, Blake. And when you are young, you take pity upon your enemies. So I hear your concerns about the rogue Greek's friends, and your former brothers-in-arms. Tell your brother that I will pay fifteen million if they can bring me the Venus girl-alive. Also tell them that the Valdez boy and Zhang can also be captured and brought back to us, if possible."

Blake suppressed a smile, until Octavian said, "But you must remember, Blake, that pity is for the weak. I don't want to see such weakness from you ever again, understand?"

Blake nodded solemnly, "Thankyou." Octavian turned away from Blake and gazed back out at New Rome. He was silent for several moments, and then he spoke in a quiet, assertive voice.

"If you do this well Blake, you'll soon become very prominent in our new nation," Octavian smiled slightly when turned to see the teen's eyes light up.

"Who knows, maybe you can be a praetor one day," Octavian continued casually, turning back to his view of New Rome. He could hear Blake almost squealing in excitement. Then the characteristic _ding_ of a text message on a cellphone resounded throughout the temple. Blake checked it, and seeing it was of importance, decided to take his leave. Blake put on his helmet and smiled.

"I will do everything and _anything_ in my power to make sure that all goes well General," Blake said enthusiastically.

"Please Blake, call me Octavian…I find the word general to be so…pompous."

Blake smiled and turned to leave, "I'll report back to you as soon as possible sir-or erm Octavian." Octavian simply nodded, his eyes never leaving his view of New Rome.

After the boy left, he smiled.

Octavian knew that he would get the job done. Although he would've preferred to do this personally, he couldn't let such a plot be traced back to him. It would ruin his public image with Greeks and Romans alike if they found out he'd assassinated Percy Jackson. But he was confident that Blake would get the job done.

_His ambition drives him…and it will be his undoing once I have no use for him anymore._

Smiling broadly, Octavian looked out again across the glory of New Rome and Camp Jupiter. He whispered the word _mine_ several times. Then he said it.

"Mine."

**Sorry it was soo short. tell me if I did anything wrong or if you liked it or not please, because your feedback is always appreciated and welcome. And I forgot a thankyou to Christopher Nolan for making the Dark Knight Rises, whose trailer inspired me to write this fanfic.**

**Need I remind you to review?**


	3. Wild Cards

**A/N: here's really long chpater for you guys. I might not be updating soon because of school, so I figured I'd give you guys something to work with. I have introduced a new character into this story that will help the gang. I also mentioned Hazel. Thanks to all those who did and do review! I hope you guys like it, let me know if you want my new character to stick around or...if he sucks! And please Read&Review!**

Percy Jackson sat on the ledge of the warehouse hideout with his arms crossed over his knees. He stared out toward the dark ocean of the San Francisco Bay, which was lit up for its night time activities. Boats and freighters drifted in and out of his view, no doubt dropping off and picking up their respective loads to and from the city. A cool breeze wafted through his hair as his gaze turned toward Berkeley Hills.

Toward Camp Jupiter.

Toward Annabeth.

Toward Reyna, whose kiss he was still confused about.

Toward Hazel, who Frank (and everyone else in Percy's ragtag team) was worried about.

The situation with Hazel was…delicate. After Frank and Tyson had pulled Percy out of the water and dragged him into Leo's highly stylized Mustang Shelby (**yep, same one** **from my other story, The Fire Driver**), he had driven the gang to this old warehouse. Then Piper told Percy was told how everyone had escaped when he fell off the cliff.

Apparently, Leo had snapped after the PW guards tried to round them up. He had burst into flames and wielding two hammers, single handedly took out the entire five man squadron of guards that had been called as backup from Octavian. Then he had grabbed Piper, and yelling "Follow me!" led Hazel and Frank into New Rome, where they were pursued by more of the People's Watch. Piper told (in very vivid detail) of how Leo had jumped from roofs and shot flaming nail guns at the guards, all while leading them toward his precious Mustang.

Only two streets away from the garage, however, the PW had surrounded them-until Tyson and Mrs. O'Leary came to their aid. Then, just as Leo was ready to pile everyone in the car, Hazel had stopped.

"_Guys, I can't go with you," she said as she paused in front of the car door. Frank almost pushed her in, shocked at her sudden change of heart._

"_Whad'ya mean you can't go? What in the hell-" Frank started swearing, but Leo had cut him off._

"_Hazel. We have to move-now. I'll give us about two minutes until ol' Octi's asshole pooples watch come busting down the door," Leo said as he gunned the engine. Frank gave her an exasperated look._

"_Well you heard what he said! Come on! Let's get out of he-"_

"_Frank," Hazel interrupted gently, "I need to stay. You guys are going to need someone on the inside to tell you what's going on. And Octavian wouldn't dare touch me because Nico is my brother-and he's terrified of Nico."_

"_But-"_

"_Please Frank. I need to make sure Octavian doesn't try to kill Reyna while she's still sick, or worse, start rounding up kids as 'spies'. And I will try to convince the campers that Octavian is just a power hungry tyrant."_

"_Please Frank."_

_Frank stared at her with intense passion. He already knew he wouldn't be able to talk her out of it, and, being a son of Ares, he knew that using Hazel as a spy and quiet rebel leader was an infallible plan. He hugged her tightly and kissed her on the head. A single tear slid down from his left eye._

"_Be safe," he said, gazing down at her. She reached up and kissed him lightly on the lips._

"_I will."_

_Then Frank jumped in the Mustang, and Leo sped away._

Percy stood up and uncapped Riptide again. It was shimmered in the dim industrial lights. He examined the slightly faded scar in the middle of the sword, where Jason's imperial gold had struck his celestial bronze.

His bandaged arm dropped, with his hand still holding the sword, and the eerily bright white bandage provided a stark contrast to the rest of his tan body. Percy grimaced as he thought of his current predicament. This wasn't something that he knew he could win; he wasn't simply slaying giants or Titans, or fighting monsters.

No, this was something different entirely.

This time his enemies were his friends, his blood, and his allies. There was no clear sense of right and wrong here; there were no clear monsters that needed to be slain, no evil head bad guy who could simply be defeated.

Octavian had changed everything.

_Well, that is if you didn't count Octavian_, he thought. _But even if I did manage to defeat him…would it really end there? What would stop him from gathering supporters and doing it all over again? Would I…have to kill him? Would I even be able to kill him?_

All of these thoughts only deepened Percy's sense of unease about his current 'rebel' status. Percy had been so worried that he'd actually sent Tyson away.

It wasn't that Tyson wasn't incapable, or not smart enough. He knew that if he explained everything, Tyson would understand. It was Percy's fear of what Octavian would do to Tyson if he caught him. Tyson's hero status had dropped after the Giant War, once the camp had been invaded by Cyclops and other monsters. Only after Percy had cursed, screamed, and finally begged, the Senate decided that Tyson was no threat, and, thankfully, no spy. But Octavian had been careful to keep that resentment of Tyson alive, and he knew that any demigod who supported Octavian would try to-

_No,_ Percy thought as he closed his eyes, _I can't even see that happening._

So, against some of the team's better judgment, he'd sent Tyson away with his father, Poseidon, who he knew would keep him safe. At the very least, Poseidon would send him back to Camp Half-Blood by way of Rainbow, Tyson's pet hippocampi.

Behind him, the door to the roof of the warehouse opened. Percy reacted quickly, instinctively raising his sword and turning toward person coming out the door. His green eyes met Piper's startling brown ones-and her dagger, which was pointed at his chest.

Percy smiled and pulled back his sword. "I see you've gotten faster on the draw McLean," he said in mock official voice. Piper smiled radiantly back at him, and, with a twirl of her dagger, sheathed it back at her belt. Percy examined Piper before he spoke again. She was wearing her usual white ski jacket with somewhat tightly (yet very, very attractively) fitting light red t-shirt and blue jeans, which all seemed to fit her well-toned body perfectly. Her face and hands were slightly scuffed up from the fight, and her eyes, which had just turned blue, were clouded with worry. Despite all of this, she was still very beautiful. Her skin, a deep tan, seemed to glow in light of the bay and her hair (which she started to grow out after Jason left her) fell over her soft yet fierce face like a cascading waterfall.

"You ok?" Percy asked as he turned away from, blushing. He started to get irritated with his sudden observance of Piper's beauty. He walked back to the edge of the roof, and her heard Piper's footsteps as she followed him.

"I'm fine," she said quietly. "How about you?"

"Me? Oh I'm fine. Banished from camp, best friend whooped my ass, and my girlfriend left me, but I'm fine," Percy said sarcastically. Then he smiled and looked at her worried face.

"But seriously, I'm fine. Just thinking, is all."

Piper's eyes turned to a striking lighter blue, and then her face contorted into a frown.

"Don't lie to me Percy. There's something wrong…tell me," she said as she scrutinized his face. Percy looked away and sat down on the edge of the warehouse. "I'm fine Piper," he said, taking care to look away from her.

"Percy…" she said forcefully, her voice layered with Charmspeak. Percy swore, and then turned to after he succumbed to her voice. He swore silently again when he noticed how beautiful she looked so close to the ocean.

Percy sighed heavily, and gazed back down at the water. His sword lay in his lap, still uncapped. "Fine then Pipes…I'm afraid." He looked up at Piper to see her face in shock. Her eyes almost screamed, _but you're not supposed to be afraid! You're Percy Jackson for goodness sakes!_

"Not for me, "Percy said hurriedly when he interpreted her face. "I'm scared for you. For all of you. For everyone at Camp Jupiter. This won't be a…normal fight Piper. I know Octavian and I know he plays dirty-really dirty."

Piper was silent for a moment as she stared across San Francisco Bay. She could see Alcatraz, the notorious prison famous for the criminals it held. Her dad had taken her there once, when he hadn't been filming.

"It's going to be hard Percy," she said quietly, "But it won't be impossible. Don't be afraid for us…we can handle ourselves."

"Please don't be afraid Percy," she said as she met his sea green eyes.

"Cause quite frankly, you're all we've got."

Percy stared at her for a long while. She stared back just fiercely, silently challenging him to tell her she was wrong. He looked down at his sword after what seemed like an eternity. "I don't know if I can win this one Piper," he raised his hand when Piper started to interrupt.

"Know why?"

Piper shook her head.

"I can't kill someone who's not blatantly bad. It's always been my…weakness. I'm no executioner, and I'd hate to have to kill Roman demigods to help them-if that even makes sense. And it's not even like they want help this time. They actually believe Octavian is the right thing for them. They _hate_ me now. How will I be able to-" Percy stopped when Piper's soft hand touched his cheek.

"Percy. Stop. We're going to win this one. Trust that. It could take weeks, or months, or years, but we're gonna win this one," She gazed at him with such ferocity, such confidence, and with such beauty, Percy believed her.

Without really being aware of what he was doing, Percy leaned in to give her a kiss-

_Verrrmroomm, verroom!_ A motorcycle roared to the front of the warehouse.

Percy snapped out his stupor and leaned away from Piper. Piper stared at Percy in shock, and Percy quickly shook it off and got up. "Um, that must be Leo's contact, let's go meet him," he said as he quickly capped Riptide and walked toward the door.

"Ok, I'm right behind you," Piper said as she got up and started to follow him.

"And Seaweed Brain?" she asked. Percy turned around to see her blushing crimson under the night light. Percy was sure he was too, judging by the warm feeling he had in his cheeks.

"Yeah?"

"Keep those hormones in check, got it? Or might just have to stab you," she said as she walked past him, smiling, closing the door abruptly behind her.

Percy ruffled his hair and shook his head. _Damn you Aphrodite,_ he thought as he opened the door, _for having a smokin' hot daughter and playing with my emotions._

* * *

Percy walked down stairs to see Piper, Leo, and Frank all on edge. Frank had his spear aimed at the door, and Piper had unsheathed Kiparis. Leo, who was surprisingly calm in this situation, had pulled out a nail gun from his tool belt and in the other a rather large hammer. Leo gestured to Percy with a grand wave of his hand.

"We'll open it on your command, O fair leader kelp for brains," he said with a mischievous smile. Percy saw Piper roll her eyes. He caught her eye. She blushed and looked away. Frank was on edge as usual, but he couldn't help but crack a smile at Leo's joke.

Percy uncapped Riptide.

"Let's do it."

Leo opened the door quickly, revealing medium height man in a red and black motorcycle helmet. Behind him, a very fast (and probably very expensive) black and red, sleek foreign motorcycle. His dress only seemed to mirror driving colors: he wore a black jacket with what looked like a red dress shirt underneath, over some dark blue jeans. His hands which he had raised in the air when he saw the weapons pointed at him were also adorned with black gloves.

"Jesus Christ Leo," he said from underneath his helmet, and somehow Percy was able to hear his voice very clearly. It was slightly rough, but with some strong sarcastic undertones in it. "When you said you were callin' in a favor, I didn't expect you would kill me."

"Take off your helmet, please," Piper said from across the room. The guy's hands lowered slightly, as if he were hesitating.

"I can move my hands?"

"Yesss," Leo responded sarcastically.

"Ok…I am taking off the helmet," he said as he reached for the helmet with an exaggerated slowness. Percy couldn't help but smile at this guy. Of course Leo's contact had to be a wiseass just like him.

After a minute of watching the guy slowly turn his helmet round and round, Frank snapped. "Just take it off already!"

"OK! Fine," he said pulling off his helmet. Percy heard Piper gasp, and Frank shrank back just a bit. The man-no-teen's face wasn't abhorrently ugly; it was actually quite handsome. He had bright, light brown eyes that radiated with intelligence and a disturbing lack of sanity, but also seemed weighed down with sorrow. He had a head full of hair that was dark and curly that seemed to be styled in an orderly manner, with only on lone curl falling over his forehead. His smile was huge and mischievously sinister, and his nose had a very slight sneer. His skin was a light hazelnut color-he was probably black and white, if he wasn't mixed with anything else. All in all, a handsome, normal teen.

Except for the scars.

There had to been at least a dozen of them on his face; half of them had faded into his skin color, so they were virtually non existent. However, he had one long scar that ran along side his left cheek. It was still pink, and Percy guessed it was new. There was a small diagonal slash on the cleft on his chin, one that ran from his hairline to tip of his eye, and another that started from the neck and ended at his ear. The scars didn't make him look ugly; they just made him more…sinister and dangerous looking.

"Geez Louise," he said as he put his helmet on the ground, "I'm lookin' at a room full of legends right now." He smiled again, and looked at Leo, who seemed unfazed by his appearance.

"Been awhile since I saved your ass Valdez."

Leo chuckled softly, but still didn't put down his hammer or his nail gun.

"You're right it has been awhile, Adam."

Adam smiled again, "Well…this seems like my type of party. We've got freakin' gorgeous army stoppin' Piper McLean over there, uhh the legendary Fire Drivin' giant killin' Leo Valdez. And Frank Zhang! Frank friggin' Zhang!" He looked past Frank and saw Percy.

"Holy crap. It's Percy Jackson. I'm honored, I really am. I have to shake your hand Percy," Adam took a step forward, and Frank shoved the spear into his face. Adam looked puzzled.

"We still don't know if we can trust you yet," Frank said tersely, and Percy couldn't help but agree. There was something seriously off about this guy. Adam smiled sweetly and said, "You'd better take that spear out of my face before something bad happens to you."

Frank didn't move.

Adam sighed, and then he twitched.

What happened next was so fast the Percy wasn't even able to see it properly.

Adam had pulled a silenced gun and aimed square at Frank Zhang's head.

His other arm had a one and a half foot celestial bronze blade protruding from his jacket sleeve, and its tip hovered an inch away from Leo's neck.

"Now," he said quietly as he thumbed the safety from the side of his gun, "I know what you're thinking Frank. Why would he pull a gun on a guy with a spear at close range? By all means, it's more likely you'll run that spear that our daddy gave you right through my neck."

He pressed the gun closer to Frank's head.

"But then again, you don't know what type of gun this is-which is weird considering children of Ares and Mars have the ability to identify every weapon imaginable, regardless of its use or make. But this…this gun is very special to me. It was built by some very high end weapons dealers who also supply Delta, SEAL, and Green Beret units their weapons. It was my design though."

Adam smiled.

"And you know why it's so special to me? Because it's specifically built to wipe out demigods."

Percy felt the room drop a few degrees.

"It can fire both celestial bronze and lead bullets. Lead can hurt a demigod," he nudged his arm slightly toward the scar on his forehead, "But it won't kill us. That's the god part of demigod. If we have nectar and ambrosia on hand we can survive headshots…trust me I would know."

"Unfortunately for you, this is loaded with celestial bronze bullets."

Frank didn't even flinch. He didn't move his spear either, and Percy never thought he'd seen the baby-faced son of Mars so determined. "Yeah," he said, "But do have the guts to pull the trigger?"

Adam's face faltered for the tiniest of seconds, but Percy saw it. His psychotic smile had fallen into a deep frown that Percy had seen on deeply unhappy people. He hastily donned the smile again.

"You play poker Frank?"

"No. Why?"

"Well do you know the rules: fold, you're out of the game, raise your bet to scare your opponents out, and then check your cards to call your opponent's bluff? Ever heard of that?"

"Yeah."

"So do you call my bluff Frank…or will you fold?"

Frank hesitated, and then said, "I call your bluff."

Adam's hand jerked rapidly, and Piper, Leo, and Percy all screamed "NO!" at the same time. Percy looked away, waiting for the inevitable.

But no gunshot came. Instead all he heard was a shallow click and when he turned around, he saw Adam holding out his gun, handle first, to Frank. With a flip of his arm, Adam retracted his arm blade, and he became a harmless sixteen year old again.

"I'm glad you called my bluff Frank," he said quietly. Then he began to slowly pace around the warehouse, past Leo, Piper, and a totally dumbfounded Frank, who was still holding the gun. He rolled up his jacket sleeves, revealing heavily tattoos forearms. Then he grabbed a chair and sat down, putting his feet on the old poker table.

"I don't kill demigods who have effectively saved the lives and freedoms of over seven billion people time and time again. I definitely don't kill those who are pure of heart either. You're all so innocent…" he said as he gazed at each of them in turn, his eyes finally resting on Percy.

Leo snapped out the shock and asked Adam, "What about the information I asked you about?" Piper and Frank soon followed in their awakenings, and Percy asked the most pressing question.

"Who exactly are you?"

Adam held up and hand and leaned backward. He ran the other through his curly hair, effectively messing it up. "First things first," he said as he yawned loudly, "I'll answer my compadre's question. But you're really not going to like answer…especially you Percy."

Percy nodded and gestured for him to go on.

"Ok. Word on the hypothetical street," his lips twisted slightly at his pun, "is that there are four cap or kill orders out on some A-list demigods." He waved vaguely at the four of them, and pulled out a pack of cards from his jacket pocket. Then he stood up and started to pace again, shuffling the cards as he did so.

"I can guarantee that Octavian has put up a handsome award for you all…and I can only make assumptions as to what bounty hunter demigods would take such a high risk job-and which of you has a mandatory cap or a mandatory kill."

He craned his neck and continued, "Adult demigods from Hermes and Apollo rarely see this side of the law; something drastic has to happen to stop them from becoming normal people. Other than a few well executed and well paid heists, you generally don't hear about them. Children of Mars are natural warriors, and they tend to enlist if they don't want to settle down in New Rome. It's usually good career choice; they still get the same discipline as in new Rome, they still get to whoop ass, and they get paid for it. They usually rise in rank quickly and become some badass black ops outfit that the CIA may call on to take of their shady business. Well most of them do…the others end up…well I'll explain that in a second"

Adam paused mid shuffle, pulling out four cards.

"Then there are the people who will kill you for sport, and the money is almost like a bonus to them. Men who bear the mark of Ares, the god of war. His sons, who can become so violent with age that all they want to do is kill, and monsters just aren't good enough. Sometimes Mars's children join them, if they were kicked out their respective militaries."

"My brothers…" he uttered quietly, looking at the cards he had drawn.

"They will be the ones to take the bounty-their crazy asses will think it's a worthy challenge to take out some the highest caliber demigods in the current mythological world. And I have a pretty clear idea of who is going to be capped and who is going to be killed."

He stepped toward Frank first, and pulled out a jack, handing it him with another crooked smile. "Let's call you a Jack-of-all-trades, Frank. Octavian doesn't want to look like a bad guy just yet, so he'll pay a little extra to who ever can catch you, so he can torture you, break you and force you into compliance. You're also exceptionally skilled in tactics, and I'm sure he wouldn't mind having a general like you on his side. Don't get caught."

Frank inclined his head and took the card, with some newfound respect for Adam. Adam walked over to Leo with a smile.

"Same with you Leo. I don't think he knows you're one of the best drivers in the world, or you're an ass-kicking machine if someone pisses you off. But he doesn't know that you are one the best demigod mechanics this side of the world. That's a useful trait," he handed Leo a Jack.

"Don't get caught."

Then Adam strode over Piper, who was looking at him as if she were going to cut his head off. Adam raised his hands in surrender. Then he tentatively held out a card. Piper snatched it and flipped it over. Her hostile look soon morphed into one of slight confusion.

"Why a queen?" she asked, holding up the card. Adam smiled again, "Why a queen? Because you're one of Percy's greatest weapons-and one Octavian's most powerful potential weapons. Your gift of Charmspeak is far too valuable to waste, so if stuff gets hot when you're with these three, don't expect those bullets to come flying at you."

"And it's not just your Charmspeak: you have a beauty that will instantly attract people to you, and an even more enigmatic personality that makes people like you. This would make you very useful in the Senate if Octavian needed someone to pass laws that they wouldn't like to hear from him. And he's got a huge crush on you to add to all of that."

"Don't get caught, Piper."

Piper nodded, blushing.

Then Adam walked over to Percy, and his smile grew even bigger. "And now for the main course-Percy Jackson! Ladies and gentlemen I give you the underdog outcast from New York, who gave ol' Kronos one of the most legendary ass whippings you've ever seen, and who personally delivered a good old American one-two-punch to Gaea, putting her to sleep and knocking her down for the count!"

He handed Percy his last card. It was an Ace of spades.

Percy held it up, and Adam continued, "Percy Jackson, the ace of spades. Camp Jupiter's last hope from being taken over by Octavian. Reyna and Hazel's last savior, and Octavian's greatest enemy. You are our ace in the hole, Percy. You're our last hope. There will be no capture order for you."

His eyes bore into Percy's.

"Don't die Percy."

Percy nodded solemnly. He had expected as much. But now he needed to know who exactly Adam was-and if he could trust him or not.

"You haven't answered my question, Adam," Percy said as he put the card in his back pocket. "We could use all the help we could get, but we still don't know if we can trust you or not."

Adam sighed, and stepped into the center of the room. He looked at all of the demigods and, putting his hands in his jeans, began to speak. For the first time, Percy could see Adam's arms clearly. They actually weren't covered with tattoos, but with what looked like black slashes and scorched symbols of ancient Greek.

"I guess I'll just tell you all. I mean it's not like I have much of a choice anyway, considering that in a fight with all of you I would lose, and Piper would charmspeak the truth out me anyway."

Percy read one of Adam's arms. It was the Greek equivalent to the word "_retribution"_.

"History doesn't look kindly on guys like me. We've been called cowards and scumbags; we've been blamed for numerous deaths of very important people. And for the most part they're right to blame and slander us."

"_Assassins_" he spat as he stared at the floor. Piper actually gasped in shock. Then he held out his arms for them to see. On the other, Percy could Latin writings and a few Roman numerals burned into his skin. Frank translated it before Percy could figure it out.

"_To the bitter end_…? What does that mean?" Frank asked nervously.

Adam smiled sadly, and started to involuntarily rub his arms. "It means what it is. _Retribution to the bitter end_," he laughed mirthlessly.

"I'm not what you call a conventional assassin. I'm not one of those guys from the movies who rides around on motorcycles and acts like a badass. I didn't come into this…for fun."

Percy started to see Adam's eyes glaze over with tears as he remembered some distant memory. He closed them and a few drops came out. Then he exhaled deeply, and pulling down his sleeves and looking up at all of them, he began again.

"My name is Adam McClark. I'm a Greek demigod, and a son of Ares," he paused for a moment. The room had grown eerily silent as everyone, Percy included, waited for Adam to speak.

"When I was fifteen, I killed someone in cold blood," he said quietly.

_The SUV burned behind him. His sword lay a few feet away, but he still had his gun. He picked himself up and walked toward the struggling figure that lay on the ground a few yards away from him._

"That person took someone very special away from me," he said as more tears welled up in his eyes.

_Adam coughed up blood and slid the safety off his gun with a short clack! and he limped closer to the struggling figure. The man, who had bright red hair and crazy brown eyes looked at him in shock as Adam leveled his quivering gun at him._

"I should've let it go…but I couldn't…"

"_Kid, what are you doing?"_ _Adam didn't respond. He only gazed into the man's eyes with pure anger._

"_C'mon kid, you're not gonna pull the trigger! You're a hero! Demigods don't kill their own! They don't even kill people!" Adam's hand stopped shaking._

"_This one does."_

_Then he pulled the trigger and watched as the bullet soared into the man's head. The blood sprayed out all over his chest, and Adam fell to his knees._

_Then he put the gun to his head and closed his eyes._

"Don't ask me if I feel any remorse, cause' I don't and I never will," he said quietly.

"_Put the gun down! Drop you weapon!" Adam opened his eyes and dropped the gun. A mass of blue uniforms swarmed him a few seconds later._

"So after the gods watched one of their children kill someone, they decided that I needed to be forgotten-permanently. Next thing I know I'm shot as I'm being transported from court. The Mist made all of the humans and demigods alike forget me."

He sniffed, and started pacing again.

"Fast forward about a month. I'm stuck in the fields of Asphodel, drifting aimlessly, but never forgetting what I did and who I was. Hades refused to throw me into Tartarus-he said all of my good deeds outweighed my murder. And he also took into account that the person I murdered was an incredibly evil demigod who'd sent far too many people to the Underworld before their time."

"Sooo, ol' Ares decides that I wasn't punished well enough, and he pulls me out of the Underworld. He forces me to become his "silent warrior" or, assassin. He says if I serve him and his alter ego Mars well, I'll be able to see _her_ again-and die in peace. Until then, I would become an immortal, which means every time I 'die', I just get back up again. I don't go to the Underworld like the rest of you. My sentence is 27 years of servitude," Adam said as she showed them the Roman numerals.

"Four years down," he said, "Twenty-two more to go."

They all stared at Adam in shock. His story was almost too unreal-even for a demigod-to believe. Percy hesitantly asked, "So why do you want to help me? I mean you're supposed to be Ares's assassin, and he hates me for beating him in a swordfight. How do we know you didn't come to set me up or something?"

"Or if you're working for Octavian?" Piper added.

"Or if this is all made up?" Frank asked, gripping his spear again.

"Or if you're a hobo who wandered in here?" Leo said. They all looked at him. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Just trying to contribute guys."

Adam paused as if he were thinking. Then he smiled his crazy crooked smile, and his eyes lit up again, "All very good questions. First I'll answer Percy's."

He raised his arms and walked over to Percy. "You see these grisly burn marks here?"

Percy nodded.

"Well they are from a whip made of celestial bronze dipped in Hydra venom. Since I'm an immortal, threat of death just doesn't cut it to scare me into submission, so Ares had to get creative. You see, I don't always follow orders." He smiled and pointed at one mark at the crook of his arm.

"One of my first missions was to kill Percy Jackson. It was from Ares, commissioned by Zeus. I was given a SGRT-1 sniper rifle and ten bronze bullets. I stalked you for a week, and I saw that you were just a really good kid. So I said, 'why the hell would they wanna kill this guy? He's unlucky but what's up? What'd he do to them?"

Adam scratched his hair and then rolled his neck.

"So I blew up the rifle and flipped Ares the bird when he asked why I didn't rub you out," he said looking at Percy directly in the eyes. "That's when the whippings started. I will _never_ be loyal to Ares alone. Mars, maybe. He's a decent guy. Anytime I take a mission from Mars, it always to go help some rebels in a third world country take it back, or stop a crazed demigod from launching a few nukes to start something, or being a fill-in for security for some type of aid worker or diplomat in some warzone."

"But with Ares, it's nothing like that. I do kill quite a few scumbags for him, but it's mainly because he let them get to powerful. He basically throws some corrupt dictator or businessman or terrorist's file that's usually his son or some other god's spawn, and says 'fix it'. Like I said, I'll always hate that asshole for making me do all of this. I actually laughed when he told me you beat him. So please…don't put in the same boat as him."

Then he turned to Piper, pulling his jacket sleeves back down. "Piper, I spent about four years of my life killing guys like Octavian, and loving it. I'm a natural anarchist, I have a blatant disrespect for authority, and I've always been a rebel without a cause…why the _hell_ would I work for that braying jackass now?"

"K. Now Frank. Dude, these burns and stuff are real, ok. The gun you have in your hand was designed and financed by me. I have quite a few awfully vivid and saddening war stories I can tell you, but I won't because I don't like to relive them, understand?"

Frank nodded and then he tucked his spear back on his back. "Here take this back," he said handing the gun back Adam. Adam pushed it away.

"Keep it. You're going to need it," he said as he looked around all of them. "My current mission from Mars, the Roman god of War, is to help Percy Jackson and his friends retake Camp Jupiter from Octavian at any and all costs. Am I in or not?"

Percy didn't respond immediately.

_He could be a very powerful ally,_ he thought as he looked at Adam, _but he could also be a double agent…but he really doesn't seem like he is._ Percy looked at Piper, who ha seemed to have read his mind. She nodded at him. Then Percy looked over to Frank, who shrugged his shoulders.

"What's the harm in it?"

Leo nodded, "And last time I met him, he _did_ save my life so…"

"Alright you're in Adam. But I can't promise you any victories in this fight against Octavian. We're currently outnumbered and under armed-and underfed," Percy said, crossing his arms over his growling stomach. Adam only smiled again.

"I've always_ loved_ being on the losing side. Fortunately for you, I am actually very well off, since one of the conditions of my contract is for Ares to pay me after every successful job. It's not that much, but I've invested," he pulled out an Apple IPhone, "In a few profitable companies. I can get you weapons, food, hideouts, and money."

Piper nodded, beaming, "We'd be very grateful, Adam."

"There's a lot more that I have to teach you all…and tell you about. But it's getting late, and I'm sure you guys are tired. Grab some Zs, and I'll take first watch."

He reached into his coat and whipped out a folded submachine gun. It clacked into attention, and Adam held at his side idly as he looked at all of them.

"Well! Get on then! I'll be on the roof," he said as he climbed the stairs, "And Leo could you bring my bike in?"

"Sure, whatever dude," Leo said as he opened the door and walked out side. When Adam walked past Percy, he stopped. "Get some sleep Percy. Rest is a weapon." Percy nodded and watched Adam climb the stairs. He reached into his pocket again and felt the card Adam gave him.

_Ace of Spades…last hero…_

**P.S.: What do guys think about Percy and Piper growing into something more? Let me know and please review!**


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